The Taipei City Government said on Tuesday it does not approve of the Ministry of Justice's establishment earlier this year of a detention center for drug addicts in the vicinity of Feitsui Reservoir because of concerns about pollution.

Kang Shih-fang, director of the Feitsui Reservoir Administration Bureau, said the number of drug inmates and staff at the drug-treatment center in Pinglin, Taipei County, is expected to reach 1,200 in two years, or about one-fifth of Pinglin's current population of 6,000.

Kang said that by then the center will turn out more than 272 tonnes of wastewater per day.

As the center is only 1 km away from the Peishih Creek in the upper stretch of Feitsui Reservoir, Kang said he is worried that wastewater from the center might flow into the creek and eventually pollute water in reservoir.

Noting that the reservoir is the main source of drinking water for 4 million residents in the greater Taipei area, Kang said the establishment of the center threatens the region's water supply safety.

"We think it's inappropriate to set up a drug center in the reservoir's vicinity," Kang said, adding that the bureau would send a letter to the central government expressing its opposition to the facility. Source: http://www.taiwanheadlines.gov.tw/